Saturday, December 23, 2006

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love said to me...

.Five days down and two days to go (including today) in my 7 days of Christmas tips to keep control of your waist line over Christmas.

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love said to me...

WHAT ABOUT EXERCISE?

I remember the time when I used to be able to eat huge quantities of fat filled food and I stayed thin as a rake! That was a few years ago now but these days it's not quite so easy. I certainly don't recommend eating quantities of fat filled food anyway but one sure way to knock off the pounds and / or keep the pounds off is to up the level of exercise that you take...

...As Nordic Walkers we are fortunate to have what for the vast majority of people is the most effective, convenient, fun filled and safe way to exercise ever invented!

So - If Nordic Walking is already a regular part of your life, do keep it up over the Christmas period and perhaps increase the 'time' / 'distance' that you Nordic Walk and / or the 'intensity' at which you Nordic Walk or the 'frequency' that you pick up your poles and 'walk the walk'.

Note: Remember - Increasing intensity is not all about speed! Another, and perhaps a better way of increasing intensity is to 'slow' your 'speed' and 'increase' the 'intensity' of your poling action (eg push harder).

Also, If you don't normally Nordic Walk up and down hills, why don't you give it a try - If you do already include hills then include more hills. Another fun way to add intensity is to introduce 'intense' bursts of speed. There are lots of ways you can play with this one eg; After you have warmed up by Nordic Walking for eg 15 - 20 minutes; walk for 5 minutes at a medium speed and intensity and then walk for 1 minute at a faster pace. Repeat the exercise 5 times. Perhaps repeat this a couple of times during your session.

Note: If you don't want to do the 1 minute bursts at a faster pace then increase the intensity of the poling action for 1 minute bursts instead. You are only resticted by your creative imagination and of course your fitness level.

If you have let the Nordic Walking slip over recent times and your poles are gathering dust in the corner, then why not make Christmas the reason to re-focus and get back to your regular Nordic Walks.

Or are you one of those people who have been meaning to get started for ages but the timing just hasn't been right - Well, why not make Christmas the 'right' time to start. Even if you have yet to buy your poles just get out there and walk! There is no better time than the present to start your exercise campaign.

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve (unless you live eg in Australia / New Zealand etc where it will be Christmas Day). Tomorrow will be my 7th Day of Christmas and my final day of tips.